I just spent a week in Paris. It was stunningly beautiful as the city prepared for the Olympic Games. We left the country just as Paris implemented a rule for pedestrians (or runners like me) — not allowing them to mill its beautiful streets without a pass that was being scanned by local police officers.
Paris is racially and culturally diverse. It is one of the reasons it appeals to my family — we see ourselves in that diverse community. As a human-rights lawyer and Muslim woman, however, I am saddened by the French from the Summer Games.
While I do not wear the hijab, I respect and admire what it means to Muslim women who wear it. So yes, this is my issue. France absurdly tags this summer’s Olympics as the first — while blatantly blocking access to the games for hijab-wearing athletes.
Muslim athletes in France have been told to pick either their sport or their faith. This is coerced captivity for Muslim athletes as the country publicly flouts its discrimination of them on the world stage for everyone to watch. I cannot help but fear what the long-term impact will be for young hijab-wearing Muslims in France.
The participation of women in sports has always contained its own roadblocks and now young Muslim women will cower under the weight of France’s bold declaration: your hijab has no space in sports and we do not want you to represent us. Whether or not they are participating in the Olympics, Muslim women athletes looking to reclaim their identity through sport have been socially isolated. So how can they do this? Where are the human rights lawyers in France on this issue? Not only does the ban violate International Human Rights law — both France and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have it all wrong.
France’s sports minister says French athletes are public servants and tethered to the same restrictions as anyone in public service. This makes no sense. French athletes are just athletes.
They represent their country in playing a sport — it bellies sense for them to be bound to policies that were never meant for them. Hijab wearing athletes are told that they are flouting the very policies that discriminate against them. Furthermore, the Olympic ban flies in the face of the that clearly calls for respect of religion and protection of human rights .
Why is France being permitted to circumvent its obligations under Charter? It is not just France; it is also the IOC that has failed Muslim athletes in France. The ban erodes both the credibility and legitimacy of the IOC. The IOC is complicit in that it is permitting France to host these games.
In September of 2023, the IOC stated that the “hijab ban” would not apply to athletes from other nations. Is the IOC blithely unaware of its responsibility to protect and advocate for all female athletes? Or did the IOC simply not care enough about the female Muslim athletes in its host country? The IOC is the leader of the Olympic Movement and it has a considerable amount of power — power that it deemed unnecessary to use while certain women and girls will undoubtably have their access to sport denied in the years to come — an ongoing systemic issue for women athletes in France. The IOC could have stopped this from happening and could have insisted on overturning the ban so all athletes could compete in the Olympics this year.
The IOC made a choice and must be held as least partially responsible for this shameful moment in the history of the Olympics. This is blatant discrimination. All French athletes should be respected with their right to participate in the Olympic Games protected.
Suggesting that the summer Olympics promote gender equality and inclusivity is not only unacceptable, it dismisses the plight of those women athletes that are forced to sit on the sidelines this year..
